


Short Stories from Tumblr

by BeaRyan



Category: Revolution (TV)
Genre: F/F, F/M, Gen, M/M, Most of the Armada is in here somewhere, Multi, Originally Posted on Tumblr
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-05-26
Updated: 2015-09-01
Packaged: 2018-01-26 14:01:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 30
Words: 8,625
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1690868
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BeaRyan/pseuds/BeaRyan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Each chapter is a new story.  All have been previously published on Tumblr and most are very short.  I've tagged the pairings in the chapter titles.  I'm a shippy person, so most of these will include flirtation, romance or smut.  If it seems ridiculously short or horribly abuses punctuation, it's probably from a 3 sentence fic challenge.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Danny Matheson/Julia Neville, coffee shop AU

dragormir asked: (3-sentence fics) Danny Matheson/Julia Neville, coffee shop au

My hand shook as I frothed the MILF, dammit *milk*, for Julia, praying that this time I wouldn’t embarrass myself. 

When it looked perfect I took a breath to steady my voice and called out, “I’m ready for Julia.” 

She touched my hand as she took the cup, smiled in a way that shot right to my pants, and said, “I’m glad to hear it.”


	2. Bass x Miles, Zoo

kelseypogue asked: idk if you still wanna do mini fics but bass/miles. zoo trip. :)

Bass elbowed Miles, fought down a laugh, and asked, “Is that monkey doing what I think he’s doing?” 

"If you think he’s doing what you used to do with the Victoria’s Secret catalogues you stole from my mom, then yeah, he is."

"I apologized for that," Bass said with a laugh; "I tried to get by with my mom’s catalogues, but neither Lillian Vernon nor Oriental Trading Company is as hot as they sound."


	3. One Year Later, Charloe

Anonymous asked: charloe?

At this distance Charlie couldn’t make out much about the rider pounding up the dirt road towards her, but based on the cloud of dust his horse was kicking up, he was trying to outrun someone. Adrenaline surged in her veins for the first time in months; her heart pounded and her thoughts slid into sharp focus. She didn’t yet know if she was on the side of the refugee or his pursuers, but finally she had something to do.

She ran back inside the house, locking the door behind her, and bolted up the stairs, stopping by her room only long enough to grab the rifle and binoculars from the top shelf of her closet before slipping through the hidden hatch to the attic. Her lungs protested as she gulped the baked, stale air. It was stiflingly hot even though it was only early May. She pushed through the discomfort and made her way over the exposed beams to the east vent. From here she’d be able to see the rider and whoever was after him. She scanned the horizon before zooming in on him.

He wore a broad rimmed hat like the Texan authorities, and he was clean-shaven now, but it was undeniably Sebastian Monroe. Something she didn’t want to name twisted within her. A little less than a year ago she’d gone to Willoughby with her family, Bass had joined up with the Texans, and Connor had gone back to Mexico determined to topple Nunez and carve out his own empire. Both Monroe men had done well for themselves. Charlie had only learned that she wasn’t cut out to be a waitress or a farmer. 

Bass made a hard left towards the barn and Charlie scanned the horizon again, still unable to spot the threat. Knowing nothing but that he was on the run, she decided to throw in with Bass. She slid the toggles on the latches and transformed the vent into an escape hatch before sliding down the rope attached to a bolt in the wall for just such an emergency. She stayed low and moved quickly trying to keep the rifle on her back from rattling on its belt as she approached the barn. Bass could have dispatched any low-grade threat easily himself. If he was here, something significant had to have happened.

Startling him was a good way to get your throat slit, so she called out before coming around the barn door. “What do you need?”

“Miles,” he answered.

“Well, you’ve got me.”

“I need Miles.”

“Just tell me who’s after you.”

He gave her a look that asked if she was stupid, and she barely stopped herself from egging him on. Something was under his skin.

“You were riding like someone was after you,” she said.

He scoffed at that. “I’m just trying to outrun the boredom.”

“Why?”

“Because the last time I was this bored I annexed Wisconsin.” He flashed her a joyless smile. “I’ve been strongly discouraged from doing that again.”

“You sucked at ruling Wisconsin,” she said. She felt a certain affinity for the man she’d come to know, but she’d hated President Monroe.

“We were a republic,” he answered with a shrug.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means Wisconsin sent apples, cheese and 100 soldiers per year to Philly and in exchange we kept their major trade roads and borders safe. Anything else was Governor Walker’s problem.”

Charlie rolled this information around in her mind briefly before shelving it for later thought. “Why do you need Miles?”

“Because he’s spent a year in Willoughby. Either he’s figured out how to be dull and he can teach me, or he’s going out of his mind and we can go have some fun together.”

A smile crept across Charlie’s face. This was going to be fun. “I can tell you what he did to pass the time and how he plans to stay busy. He and Mom are out picking up the crib right now.” 

The look on Bass’ face was worth more diamonds than she’d ever seen in one place. With any luck she’d been a little more subtle when they’d broken the news to her. 

When he could finally speak again, Bass launched into a stream of consciousness monologue that told her more than she cared to know.

“He’s never wanted kids. He doesn’t even like kids. I picked out the American Girl doll he gave you for your fourth birthday. He wouldn’t even go in the store. I hung the trapeze in our yard when your parents left you and Danny with us for the weekend. You’d have eaten nothing but peanut butter straight from the jar if I hadn’t been there.”

Charlie tried to let the news roll off of her. None of them were who they had been. Miles may have gotten on the road to fatherhood by accident, but he was happy about it, in love with her mother, and determined to do a good job. It was a better start than a lot of kids had. 

Bass’ rant continued. “Condoms, Charlotte! Do they not have condoms in Willoughby? Are we so far out in Buttfuck, Texas that the trade carts don’t come by? Hey, you know what doesn’t get you pregnant? Buttfucking!”

She began laughing again at that one and let herself collapse on the few hay bales left over from the winter, knocking up a cloud of dust as she landed. When her laughs turned to coughs the dropped one leg to either side of the bales, straddling them, and propped herself up on her elbows, trying to get her breath back. When she could speak again she said, “Crazy man if you brought condoms to sleepy little Willoughby, I will take every last one you have. Any chance you also brought a man to fill them?”

He was on her in an instant, and her flash of protest melted in his heat. She hadn’t intended to extend an invitation, but he was here and anything but boring. Better yet, she had no fear of breaking him or shocking him unlike the locals who seemed to think French kissing was best saved for couples contemplating marriage.

She slipped her hands under his shirt and raked her nails down his back, noting the scars that Connor had left, the visible ones at least. Momentarily surfacing from the wave of lust that had washed away common sense, she murmured, “This is a terrible idea.”

“Awful,” he agreed. “Let’s do it anyway.” 

She slipped his shirt off over his head, then kissed him with more teeth than she’d dare use on most men. He pulled one of her legs up over his hip and ground against her until they were both moaning. 

“Condoms, Bass? Did you bring condoms?”

“That’s like asking if I left home without my sword.”

“It’s a yes-no question,” she insisted.

“Yes, Charlotte. Yes,” he whispered. With one hand he unbuttoned her pants before running a single teasing finger just under the waistband of her panties. “Now I’m going to make you say yes.” He smiled his devilish grin, the one that meant he had a truly brilliant plan. “It won’t be boring.”


	4. Bass x Duncan, 3 sentences

connormonroeismyking asked: Bass/Duncan "It's not love but it's close enough"

I tell my heart to shut up; he’s broken but it’s not my problem. He’s a hot piece of ass, nothing more, so I clean and bandage the burn he’s given himself to obliterate his tattoo, his old life, and I give him just enough morphine to take the edge off this reality he can’t bear. I’ll fuck him in the morning, that’s the only reason I let him stay after all, but for tonight he can earn his keep as just a bed warmer, and when he cries out in his sleep and curls against me for comfort, I stroke his hair like he’s a frightened pet in a thunderstorm and I’m a decent human being, not because I love him.


	5. Aaron x Rachel, Walking off the Chessboard

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 3 sentence fic.

At the end of a very long day, when the last nanite had flickered out of existence, Aaron began drinking with a devotion to the cause only matched by vintage Miles, and, he thought, “If I’m going to drink like Miles I might as well act like him, disregarding decency and social norms, and see if I can’t get the woman I want to respond to my dubious charms.” 

A genuine and unafraid smile settled on his face for the first time in what felt like ages, and he turned to face the only woman still alive who stimulated his intellectual and physical interest. 

He said, “It will be a decade or more before we’ve rebuilt enough for you to get back to micro-engineering, but I’ve decided to build a power plant and then a medicinal drug processing plant - I’m bringing back “Don’t be evil” - and I could really use your help, Rachel.”


	6. Bass x Connor, He looked so much like Miles

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 3 sentence fic

Bass sat beside Connor’s hospital bed, the bed he’d put the boy into, and tried not to feel. Bass was used to people hitting on him, especially men, especially drunk men, but when Connor had said those words - “It’s OK, you aren’t really my father” - he’d only had two options, shatter or smash, but beating Connor hadn’t beaten down the pain, the loss, the betrayal, the fucking Matheson of it all. He could see it clearly now - Connor looked just like Miles after all - and Bass knew what to do with people who belonged to Miles.


	7. Danny x Bass, 3 sentences

dragormir asked: Danny/Bass, that scene with Bass gripping Danny's neck...

Bass searched the young man’s face and came up empty. Danny didn’t have Miles’ iron spirit, and there were only a few hints of Rachel in the blonde haired, blue eyed muppet. He’d do, he’d motivate Rachel at least, but he couldn’t be what Bass needed most: a reason to keep going.


	8. Miloe, Laundry Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 3 sentences

swietlik asked: Three lines thing: miloe and laundry day

Miles’ hand trembled as he undid the button on his pants. He’d seen Bass naked before, but only in glimpses: the gym, camping, and one double date where he’d used his imagination as someone else’s hands had roamed his body; this would be different. Laundry day after the blackout meant washing everything you had and then lounging naked while waiting all day for it to dry, and, Miles thought dryly, praying your boner didn’t give away that you called your best friend “brother” all the time to remind yourself that he didn’t think of you the way you thought of him.


	9. Scanlon is Bass' Fanboy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 3 sentence fic

sexymeatpies asked: Charlie. Scanlon. An abandoned movie theatre. Yeahhh...

"It’s just an IMAX theater, no big deal," Scanlon said, as he and Charlie surveyed the cavernous theater their torches couldn’t fully illuminate. "You build a stage, add some lights, and put whatever you want people to believe up there. We’ll put General Monroe in front of a crowd, and we’ll have peace before dinner, I promise."


	10. Miles x Connor, Spy AU

aplacecalledshutupandstayhere asked: Miles/Connor spy!Connor and handler!Miles.

Fear twisted in Miles’ stomach as he smoothed the tape over the wires that held the microphone and wires to Connor’s body; the damn thing was just so bulky and Connor so slight that if the Russians patted him down, Miles would never see Connor again. 

Miles shoved down the worry, forced all of his feeling into a closet and slammed the door before he said aloud, “You aren’t as good as you think you are; you’ve just been very, very lucky; so don’t try any superhero shit.” 

Connor grabbed Miles by the belt and pulled him closer, his hip bones jutting into the softer lines of Miles’ body, and with Connor’s bare chest pressed firmly against the damp cotton knit of Miles’ shirt, he whispered in the older man’s ear, “If this is our last hour together, is that really how you want to leave things?”


	11. Connor x Charlie, Sugar Daddy AU

connormonroeismyking asked: ConnorxCharlie sugar daddy AU 

Connor x Charlie, Sugar Daddy. (I had to use an expanded interpretation of Sugar Daddy since neither is what I’d consider a traditional Sugar Daddy.)

She’s spoiled, but she’s rich and she likes to spend it. I pretend to be something I’m not; romantic, helpless, in love with her and her yappy fucking dog; because laying pipe in exchange for the sweet life and a phone full of connections only money can buy beats the hell out of slaving fifteen hours a day as an intern at the companies her friends own. Her “Uncle Bass”, the King of Philadelphia Cream Cheese and assorted dairy products, is in for a hell of a shock when she introduces me to him in the Hamptons this weekend.


	12. Bass x Connor, Rock Star AU

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 3 sentence fic

Bass x Connor, Rock Star AU

Connor shoved the young woman’s shirt into her hands and her body out the door while screaming at his father, “If you keep fucking a groupie in every city, your dick going to fall off!” 

"I just want to be loved, Connor, loved, loved, love….." 

Connor caught his father as he fell over; stoned, high or finally suffering the heart attack Connor knew was only one bad hit of coke away; and cursed the day Miles Matheson had promised to give them everything they’d ever dreamed of.


	13. Miloe, Superheroes AU

swietlik asked: Miloe, Marvel/Superheroes AU

Miles tugged at the silken webs that bound every part of him except Bass’ favorite. Things had been weird enough when the nanites had latched onto Aaron, but now that they’d found Bass, a joyful maniac who appreciated every gift they were willing to give him, Miles had found himself flying more often than walking and questioning how much peace a man who did *everything* in a flash could really bring to the world. Some things were better done slowly, without grips of steel, and sans the extended accessory pack Bass had added to Batman’s tool belt.


	14. Jarlie, Disney World

kelseypogue asked: jason/charlie. disney world.

Through gritted teeth and in the tone usually reserved for conversations with his father, Jason snarled, “I’m going to murder someone if this car doesn’t start moving in the the next 30 seconds.” 

Charlie’s own head was pounding and she decided to take action, create a distraction, before they both lost their minds. If the Disney folks didn’t wan’t handjobs on the rides, they shouldn’t have left them trapped inside “It’s a Small World” for the last 45 minutes.


	15. Miloe, Six Months Later

sammeyy asked: Miloe :)

When they finally, reluctantly separated, Bass flopped onto his back, sweat-soaked and sore, and let the laughter take him. Nothing was funny, per se, but everything finally felt right again and the joy needed an outlet.

"Shut up, dick," Miles said. "I’m trying to sleep over here." 

The laughter died and Bass felt the knife’s edge again. He leaned into the pain and forced himself to ask for the answer he didn’t want. ”When are you going back to Willoughby?” He didn’t say back to her, although that’s what it was, going back to her, not the town. He’d never actually hated Rachel until she’d become Miles’ girlfriend, openly acknowledged and publicly embraced.

"I’m not." 

Bass forced himself to remain still. He wanted to dance with glee, pounce on his lover and celebrate. Ding dong the witch is dead. Miles’ solemn expression told him that only one of them saw how right this break up was. 

"We gave it a real try, Bass, and I couldn’t make it work. By the end I spent as much time away as I could, went to bed early, drank too much. I had the chance to be with her all the time, and I couldn’t be who she needed me to be." 

"It’s not you, it’s her," Bass said.

"Don’t."

"Look dick, I know you have this whole ‘opposites attract’ fantasy built up around Rachel, but sometimes two things that are really different DON’T go together. Garlic and ice cream, popcorn and salsa, children and beauty pageants." 

"Honey Boo Boo was a gift to the world," Miles said. It was an old joke, a throwback to one of their tours in Afghanistan, but Bass wouldn’t let him turn the conversation. 

"A chopstick and a spoon doesn’t work as well as two chopsticks." 

"We’re in Texas, Bass. Forks." 

"I’m done. Go to sleep. You can go look for your own apartment in the morning." Bass rolled over and faced the wall. Sleep would be a long way off, but at least he wouldn’t have to stare at Miles’ stupid, stubborn, determined to be miserable face. When the arm snaked around him, one rough palm spread across his chest to pull him back against Miles, Bass resisted. The irony that Miles wanted to spoon was not entirely lost on him. 

"Forks are better with knives," Miles whispered. "People just freak out a little when they see you eating with a knife." 

"People can get the hell over it or people are going to get stabbed."

Miles planted a gentle kiss on the back of Bass’ neck, right where his spine met his shoulderblades and got in return the little shudder from Bass that let him know he’d hit his target perfectly.

"Do I really have to find my own place in the morning?" Miles asked solemnly. "Are you finally giving up on me?"

"I’m tired of chasing you Miles. You know where I am. Stay or go, but I’m done running after you. I’ve earned at least the same chance you gave Rachel."

"I’ll stay," Miles promised. "This time I’ll stay."


	16. Charlie x Connor, Youth Hostel AU

Serin’s Ask, Charlie x Connor, Youth Hostel AU

I climb the ubiquitous rough-hewn European stone steps, always so many of them and worn in the middle, and pass through the arches towards the open door of the hostel. The boy working the counter is cute. He looks like home. I’ve kissed Frenchmen, Spaniards, Pollacks, and on one particularly memorable yet partially blacked out night, an entire bus full of Asian tourists. If they’re in Europe and speak English as one of their four languages, I’ve kissed them. 

Now I’m in Italy, in Verona, and the youth hostel is farther from the city center than it has any right to be. In a decent size city it would be closer to town or on the bus line, but only Shakespeare nerds and opera nerds come to Verona, and the old convent is up a hill and outside of town. I feel near collapse, but I get out my passport and Euros and give them to the guy at the desk. 

His eyes distract me as he rattles through his speech. They’re dark brown with flecks of something that might be called gold or might be called crazy. He hits his prepared points: sheet rental 3 euros, girls on the second floor, boys on the third. No visitation. 

It’s been too long since Jean-Claude in Normandy. ”So where do I go if I want to fuck?” I ask.

"If you want to fuck me," he says, only half-joking, "Jump over the counter and come on into my office. If you want someone else then you’re looking at a stand up in the alley or you’ll need to move to a hotel instead of a hostel." 

"You’ll do," I tell him, and I hop the counter. He looks more pleased than surprised as he leads me through the door into the small room behind the check in desk. 

"I look forward to making your stay here as pleasant as possible," he says. His smile is smug. I challenge myself to make it awed in under 15 minutes.


	17. Danny x Jeremy

dragormir asked: Danny/Jeremy (because why not)

I stomped up the stairs with a trite as hell wicker picnic basket full of white bread, fresh fruit and well-made wine, real luxuries in Philadelphia, and wondered if I had the best or the worst job in the Republic. My dick has spent way too much time as a Bass proxy in the last 15 years, fucking Miles when they were spatting and fucking Rachel when she wanted to annoy one of the two of them. Now I was headed up to see Baby Matheson, 18, thank God, and Tom’s report said he had the same instincts as the rest of them: if you can’t kill it then fuck it. With any luck at least this time I’d be the blowee first instead of the blower. Never let a Matheson come first. Selfish bastards.


	18. Rachel x Duncan, Yoga Class AU

RachelxDuncan, for Serin’s Ask, Yoga Class AU

Rachel placed her hands on the ground beneath her shoulders, fingers spread, and pushed up into cobra, breathing through the movement as the chipper little hippie leading the class instructed. She tilted her chin upward and lifted her chest to the ceiling as demanded, but Duncan’s ass, just three meters away, kept her from engaging her chakras or whatever this bullshit was that she was supposed to be doing. She was trying, really trying, to be a contented suburbanite with 2 perfect children and a tenured job at the university, but a little voice inside her, one that wouldn’t shut up, kept insisting her life could be epic instead of merely “blessed”, whatever that meant, if she’d just let go of the fear and go for it.


	19. Bass x Duncan, Strip Club

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 3 sentences

For Serin. Bass x Duncan - a scene which takes place in a stripclub

Bass shifted uncomfortably in his chair as he flagged the dancer over; blonde and leggy with an ass like a peach, she was one he would have picked himself, but this one was for Duncan. 

"Is it still seven if you dance for her?" he asked the dancer, flashing her a smile that he hoped would earn him a discount; a full night’s pay initially felt like a lot to watch another woman grind on your woman, but a glance at the breasts barely hidden by the sparkly triangles of her nurse’s outfit made him think it might be a bargain. 

The dancer calculated the size of the bulge in the front of his pants and, to the side in his pants pocket, before she whispered in his ear, “It’s only thirteen to make it a private dance in the pillow room.”


	20. Jarlie, College AU

kelseypogue asked: JARLIE PLEASE?

College AU. 

Charlie wrapped her towel tightly around her and took a breath to steady her nerves. She’d somehow drawn the short stick, the oldest dorm buildings on campus, and now she’d have to make the mad dash from the showers back to her room. When she’d gotten her ridiculously long dorm packing list, a robe had seemed like shaving cream, one of those things some people might need but that didn’t appeal to her. Now that she knew there were 78 steps through her co-ed dorm between her and a shower, she’d have to buy one, but moving day had been exhausting and she’d just needed to wash off the dirt and the feelings of the day after her parents had left. 

The alternative to the towel dash, she’d been warned by the girl across the hall, was to bring her clothes with her, but there was nowhere to hang them in the stall. She’d have to hang them outside it and then drag it in the shower with her after she turned off the water, probably getting them wet on the floor, or walk out of the shower stall and take her chances with whomever was there. Walking out soaking wet and butt naked to see some guy who’d just finished taking a poop trying on her bra sounded worse than scurrying down the hall in a towel. 

The walk wasn’t bad, she only saw one person and she faked confident well. She slipped the room key she’d attached to her wrist with a hair tie into the lock and turned, but the tumblrs didn’t move. She grabbed the knob and rattled it, muttering curses and prayers that she could get the hell out of the hall, but the key wouldn’t move. She kicked the door in frustration and then cursed again when her bare toes hit the wood, but at least the door swung open. 

She moved forward without looking up, stopping when she bumped into a broad, solid chest. She looked up, and then looked up some more, finally reaching dark eyes in a golden face and a smile like a kid on Christmas. 

"What are you doing in my room?" she demanded. 

"This is my room," he said. "My mom had a stroke when she saw that my roommate brought girl’s clothes." He smiled, his hands suspended awkwardly in midair to keep from touching her. "I’d much rather live with you than a gay guy."

"What makes you think I’m not a really good transvestite?" she asked. 

He didn’t have an answer to that, he just stepped back and studied the curves the towel barely hid. She ducked into her closet, a 5 by 5 square she suspected could become a refuge if necessary and got dressed, intentionally selecting boyfriend cut jeans and a shirt that showed the arm muscles she’d developed working as a gardener over the summer but still clung to her breasts. When she emerged, damp hair down and fluffed for maximum effect, she offered her hand and said, “I’m Charlie. I’m a freshman.”

He responded, “I’m Jason. I’m a junior and confused.”


	21. Welcome to Canada, Danny, Charlie, and hints of Jarlie

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was previously published on a sub-blog.

Welcome to Canada

The voices were familiar, but Charlie thought her ears must be deceiving her. It couldn’t be them. 

"Are you sure about this?" the deeper voice asked. 

"I’m sure. Hot fat plus lye equals soap. I’ve been doing this for a couple of years now. Just trust me." 

The wind shifted and Charlie caught a whiff of the contents of the large kettle they were tending. It reminded her of the soap she’d grown up with in Wisconsin. Soap making wasn’t complicated, but it required some skill and it was easy to burn yourself. One woman had made it for her entire village, but she and Danny had both been drafted to help a few times. 

The younger voice asked, “Do you have the herbs ready?” 

"Seriously, man? Herbs? Are we making soap or soup?" 

"One of us knows what he’s doing and one of us just got here and can’t stop complaining. Tear up the leaves and toss them in there. Your butt and your breath will both be minty fresh." 

Tears welled in Charlie’s eyes. That really was Danny. They’d said the similar words to each other many times, first as children, laughing about minty farts which were always hilarious, and then when they were older and first experimenting with dirty jokes. 

Her throat felt swollen and she longed to run into her brother’s arms, but she was afraid if she disturbed the moment he’d disappear. She silently crept closer, longing to see her Danny and certain she was going to lose him again. She crawled on her stomach between the trunks of two low shrubs and tried to make out the scene in the clearing.

She couldn’t see Danny, but even if she had it wouldn’t have been more unbelievable than what she saw now. Jason straddled a fallen log with a bucket between his knees. He was shredding handfuls of mint and letting the contents drop back into the bucket. He wore the same expression of concentration and annoyance he always wore when she’d seen him taking a turn working in the kitchen. He didn’t mind shooting or butchering the meat, but he seemed to have a personal grudge against plants. 

"Is this small enough?" Jason asked Danny. 

Danny walked toward him to inspect his work but stopped as a movement in the shrub behind Jason caught his eye. ”You can come out,” he said. He couldn’t make out the face of the person there, just hair and skin obscured by leaves. ”We’re friendly.”

"And minty fresh," Jason said. "Are you hungry? As soon as Soap Boy is satisfied we’re having lunch." 

Charlie’s stomach growled in response but her body wouldn’t move. She was afraid of breaking the spell. Tears rolled down her face, blurring the images of the men, and she knew if she blinked they’d disappear.

"Do you need a hand?" Danny asked as he cautiously approached. He lay down on his side of the bushes and gently moved aside a branch so he could see the person behind it. "Charlie?" he gasped. 

Danny and Charlie stared at each other, neither able to take the next step. Shock, joy, and disbelief each fought for dominance of the moment. 

Jason laughed. “I told you she’d turn up sooner or later.” 

Charlie shuffled forward, out of the bushes and into Danny’s arms. She wept uncontrollably, but she smiled as she clung to her baby brother. Jason watched but didn’t move to interrupt them. When her sobs subsided, she was able to loosen her grip on Danny enough to pull back and look at him, to see the face that had aged since she’d last seen him but was still clearly and undeniably Danny. She turned her attention to Jason. ”Get over here!” she demanded. 

"Is it OK?" he asked. "Last time I saw you… I’m really sorry. It wasn’t me…"

"Get over here," she repeated. "The last hug you gave me was horrible. I need a new one." 

He quickly crossed the clearing but turned tentative and shy when he sat down beside them. Charlie didn’t hesitate. She pulled him into her arms and squeezed until the hurt in both of them ebbed. 

When she released him she said to them, “So this is Canada?” 

Danny answered, “Welcome to the Kingdom.”


	22. University AU, Danny, Jason, and hints of Jarlie

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Previously published on a sub-blog.

University AU

Danny grabbed the crumpled ball of cotton from the floor and tossed it at Jason. It landed on top of his head, and the blue fabric draped across Jason’s face, blocking his vision.

“Dammit, Danny. You just cost me a life.”

“You play that stupid game too much. Put a shirt on.”

Jason complied, shaking out the bundle Danny had tossed him before shoving his arms through the holes. “You’ve got a lot of attitude for a freshman.”

“So says the world’s oldest sophomore,” Danny answered. He thought he’d finished with sibling teasing when Charlie had moved out two years ago, but when he’d moved into the dorm with Jason in August, the old habits had all come rushing back, this time with an older brother instead of an older sister.

“I had stuff to do,” Jason said with a smile. They’d been living together for almost four months and Jason still hadn’t come clean with Danny about what “stuff” had kept him from heading straight to college after high school, but Danny had noticed that he never mentioned his family and hadn’t gone home for Thanksgiving like everyone else.

“So what’s the occasion?” Jason asked. 

“Wearing a shirt is an occasion?” Danny said with an exasperated sigh. “I guess for you it is. My sister’s coming over.”

Jason smile wavered between leering, hopeful, and teasing. “So on goes my shirt and off come my pants? Deal.”

“Don’t be gross, man. You make things weird with Charlie and you can’t come home with me for Christmas.” 

Jason put down his game controller. “I didn’t know I was invited.”

“Bang my sister and you’re not.”

Jason shrugged and leaned back into the lumpy cushions of the mottled brown couch. “Charlie seems fun. Being the weird extra person at your parents’ house seems less fun.”

“Nah, man. Bass comes every year Miles does. He’s our weird extra person. Miles is bringing Nora this year so she’s the person who doesn’t know anyone. You’ll just be hanging out playing video games and buying me beer.”

“So pretty much what we do now.”

“Yeah, but you get to see my sister before she’s had coffee and a shower. Really it’s all a plan to get you to stop talking about sleeping with her.”

“I could make her smile before she’s had coffee,” Jason teased, but his smile didn’t touch his eyes. 

The buzzer sounded, an irritating notice that one of them had to go down to the main door of the dorm and sign in a guest. 

“That’s Charlie,” Danny said. “You gonna keep it in your pants or are you keeping your pants on campus for Christmas break?”

“All I want to do is make her happy.” He’d begun the statement glibly, but it ended with enough sincerity that Jason had to look away. 

Danny stared back in silent response, waiting for an answer as the buzzer sounded again.

Jason said, “I won’t even try to peel those painted on jeans off that hot ass until break is over.”

“Say it again. This time like you aren’t a dick.”

“I won’t hit on your sister until January.”

"Good enough," Danny said.


	23. Jarlie, Alternate Ending

### A Twist of Fate: Four Options and an Epilogue

**_Four ways Austin City LImits could have gone differently and how the Jarlie story might have ended_ **

**_Before Austin_ **

Jason kept a gun on Connor as he approached the group gathered around the campfire.

"Let him go," Bass ordered. 

Jason complied. 

"Nice eye patch, Captain Hook," Bass sneered. 

"I cut off my own eyelid rather than let the Patriots control me again.  I want payback." 

**_Before the rally, in Austin_ **

"Split up," Miles ordered.  "If you see anyone trying to kill the president, kill him." 

"Not you," Miles added, pointing to Jason.  "You’ve got a bad habit of switching sides, and he," Miles gestured to Connor, "wanders off and gets kidnapped if you don’t watch him.  You two are together." 

Bass asked, “What’s to keep him from knocking Connor out and turning traitor again?”  

"I’ll babysit," Charlie offered. 

"Fine," Miles said, rolling his eyes.  "Bass and I will split up.  You three have a tea party and stay out of trouble." 

**_Upstairs One_ **

Charlie crept into the room and studied Jason’s still form at the window for a moment before hesitantly asking, “Jason?” 

"Stay back," he ordered.  "The Patriots can’t see you here.  They think I’m under their control." 

"What?"

"They grabbed me and called out some numbers, just not my numbers.  Your grandfather doctored the tattoo before we left." 

**_Upstairs Two_ **

The knife cut quick and deep, not just through his flesh but briefly through his programming.  She saw Jason’s consciousness fight for control of his body.  

"Cuff me to the radiator.  Fast," he ordered. 

_**Epilogue** _

"So," Miles asked.  "If I’m headed back to Willoughby with your mom, settling into a calm, quiet old age, where are you going?" 

Charlie thought for a moment before answering.  ”I was headed to California when I started chasing Monroe.  I think I might still go. I could use a clean start.” 

Miles tracked her glance, watching her watching Jason whose attention was on his dinner, and cocked a half-smile at her.  ”It’s not going to be that clean if he goes with you.” 

Charlie paused before answering. “I don’t know that he’d want to.  He doesn’t see me the way he used to.”

"That’s a good thing," Miles answered.  "He sees who you are now, not just some dreamgirl."  

Charlie didn’t respond, and Miles pushed ahead.  ”You’re making me date your mom, but you think I’m going to let you chicken out of this one? Go.”  

Charlie took a deep breath to steady her nerves before crossing the 20 feet to Jason.  It felt like a long walk.  She was used to staring down death, but she hadn’t looked her future in the face and seen much of anything in a long time.

"Ever been to California?" she asked. 

"Monroe almost sent me once," Jason answered.  "Didn’t go."

"Why not?" Charlie asked. 

He shrugged and looked away. Monroe had ordered him to California as punishment for trying to rescue Charlie from Strausser.  She didn’t know that, and he wasn’t ready to tell her yet. “There was somewhere else I wanted to be at the time.” 

"If I went to California, do you think that’s where you’d want to be now?" 

He met her eyes as a smile broke across his face. He’d vowed not to chase her again, but an invitation was a different matter. “Yeah. I’d go with you.” 


	24. Miles x Rachel, flashback

**Anonymous asked: Miles/Rachel?**

**August, 6 years before the blackout**

“Who the hell are you to make this decision all by yourself?  Don’t I get a say?” Rachel demanded.

“No.  You don’t,” Miles answered.  “The last four days have been amazing, but you knew the night you met me that I was leaving today.”

“You were supposed to be a one night stand.  Plans changed.”

“Stop. I don’t do this talking thing.”

She grabbed a shoe from beside the bed and threw it at him, landing a solid hit to the center of his chest.  “Do it anyway.”

Miles ran a hand through his hair, noting that he’d need a cut before he went back to base, back to reality.  

“I watched my mom die a little inside each time my dad shipped out.  He missed more Christmases than he made. As an adult, I get it; but as I kid I didn’t, and I swore I’d never do that to my own family.  When I decided to become a Marine, I decided not to have a family.  Broke up with my fiancee and everything.  You know how you want your life to go, and I won’t take that from you. Husband who’s there, couple of kids, you want that.  Hell, I may not understand what you do, but I can tell it’s important to you and you can’t just pick up and get a new job somewhere when I get orders.  No matter how amazing the last few days have been, and yeah, it’s been amazing, I’m the wrong man for you long term.”

“And I don’t get a say?”

“What can you say? What part of what I’ve said is wrong?”

Rachel didn’t have an answer.  She watched as he dressed and let him leave when he was done.  

**February**

For almost a month too many missions and too little sleep had kept Miles out of the Rec Tent where he could access a computer, but he’d be headed back stateside in another week.  He needed to work out how much of his leave he’d spend in Chicago with Ben and how much in Jasper.  He logged in and the one from Ben, Subject: You’re Now the Good Son, caught his attention immediately.

> _Hey Miles, Long story short, when the Dean walks in on you banging your teaching assistant in the campus lab while she says, “Ben, no, this is just so wrong,” it doesn’t matter what kind of tone she used to say it.  At least they’re going to let Rachel finish her Master’s, but I’ll probably never get my PhD and I’m out of a job.  To top if off, Rachel’s pregnant and hasn’t agreed to marry me yet.  You’ve never seen Mom and Dad this mad.  You’ll have to come by Chicago when you’re home.  I don’t think they’ll let me cross the Jasper city line until I get a ring on her finger and a new job._                        

  
Miles allowed himself a dry chuckle at his brother’s expense, who knew Ben had that kind of adventure in him, before he opened Facebook and skimmed Ben’s pictures, searching for someone tagged “Rachel”.  He expected a bookish mouse with a slightly naughty side, maybe an extra ear piercing, who’d have been appropriately awed by his nerdy brother.  Instead it was her, his Rachel, the one he’d pushed away for her own good.  She’d found a stable man who wanted a wife and kids.  He didn’t bother to lie to himself.  He wasn’t happy for her.


	25. Rachel x Aaron, Comic Con AU

Rachel X Aaron for ASoulsRain, ComicCon AU

Rachel tugged down the sleeves of her blue Starfleet uniform and finger-combed her newly red hair around her shoulders, fluffing the curled ends so it looked more like the way Beverly Crusher had worn her hair.  She should be wearing the blue sweater/lab coat too, but she’d spent a lot of time at the gym since the divorce, and what better place to show off the results than somewhere Ben wouldn’t have been caught dead: the Ten Forward Lounge from the NCC-1701-D, aka the ship’s bar from StarTrek: The Next Generation, at ComicCon.  

A man approached her, head down and fingers fiddling, and she felt the nervousness radiating off of him.  He was trying to wear Riker’s confidence, but it fit him about as well as the red command uniform. This was not a man who charmed his way through life, and reading that she immediately liked him more.  She recognized him, something about the half-groomed beard and the kind but intelligent eyes was familiar, but couldn’t place him; maybe from the line for the Wil Wheaton book signing or the impromptu Star Trek reboot discussion group while they’d  waited for the Falling Skies session. He stopped three feet from her, and they stared silently across the bar together.  

Rachel stole a glance at him at caught him peeking at her.  “Aren’t you going to offer to buy me a drink Commander Riker?” she asked

He broke into a relieved smile.  “Yeah.  Of course.  Riker could by Crusher a drink. That could happen.”

“If you mount the chair like Riker, I’ll buy.”

“Challenge accepted, Doctor.”

They selected a table with a good view of the screen simulating outer space and Aaron eyed the low-backed chair.  Rachel bit her lip.  Whatever happened, she knew this would be one of the more memorable moments of ComicCon for them.  For a moment it looked like Rachel would be buying, but Aaron’s calf caught the edge of the chair, knocking it into the table where the plastic tabletop came off its central pedestal with a crash.

“Oh, God.  Set phasers to kill,” Aaron muttered without opening his eyes.

“You need a Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster,” she said, grabbing his arm.  “Let’s switch bars.” 

Aaron stared at her, momentarily awed that she hadn’t ditched him after his spectacularly clumsy performance and delighted that this beautiful woman not only loved STTNG but apparently the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Glaxay, too.  She might be his perfect woman.  He handed $500 to the waitress who approached them - he figured that was more than enough to cover whatever damage he’d done - and wrapped his free hand around the one Rachel had tucked into the crook of his elbow. 

“Lead the way, Doctor.”

 


	26. Miles x Connor, Fleet Week

**aplacecalledshutupandstayhere asked: MilesxConnor**

Fleet Week AU, 3 sentence fic

Fleet Week was supposed to be a celebration of the Navy, but, in the bar where Connor worked, it was an excuse to lay any man in a uniform, particularly those you might not normally consider; postmen, cops and one guy wearing half of a firefighter’s costume were all holding court with boys who’d be out of their league any other time.  

  
The light flashed on the counter, letting him know that someone was buzzing the backdoor with a delivery.  He hadn’t strictly needed a special order of Old West whiskey today, but Miles wore the boots, spurs, holster, and badge the company required with a certain panache; and it was Fleet Week. 


	27. Jarlie, Sad Seduction Drabble

Jarlie Drabble

Finally alone, Charlie hooked her fingers behind Jason’s belt buckle and said, ”We have unfinished business.” 

"Falling for you was a mistake I made once. I won’t do it again." 

She tried for sultry look and a teasing tone. ”Who said anything about falling?” 

He waited. 

"I just want to feel something," she whispered. "I’m numb." 

"You won’t feel anything. We missed our chance."

She gave him a half smile, sincere this time. ”I won’t feel anything?” 

"You know what I mean. Last year it would have meant something. This would just be fucking." 

"I’ll take what I can get."


	28. Stars - Connor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For LJ's 54 Prompts in 54 Days

Connor shifted, moving the rock out of his back and making himself more comfortable in his temporary bed on the ground, and told himself it would be OK. It was just him and the stars again. He’d been here before, with nothing but the stars, and he’d come through it. He could do it again if he had to. 

How many times had he stared up at the stars of Texas, barely seeing them, as Charlie rocked above him? She’d had beautiful curves and soft skin that was so pale the parts the sun never reached practically glowed. It had always felt cosmic, and by cosmic he meant good but detached, like Nunez’s Potion Number Nine. A beautiful girl, a beautiful night, the joining of two bodies with no goal but pleasure. It should make you see stars, right? 

Now though, alone and without a bouncing set of breasts to distract him, he really saw the stars. They were balls of flame, a billion miles away, too distant to do any good. Pretty but mostly useless, like him. He should never have turned on Dad. The man had offered him an empire and love he didn’t deserve. Why exactly had he flipped on him? Because he’d rather be the one who left than the one who got left? Because he thought Bass was backing out of the deal and when someone double crossed you in the drug trade you ended it quick and bloody? Whatever his reason had been at the time, he knew now that it had been a mistake. 

Before that, he should never have turned on Nunez. That man had offered him power, women and money. All of those had been nice. All of them were now gone. 

He traded in his aunt and uncle for Nunez. He’d never liked them, religious zealots who didn’t understand that a young man had needs. They didn’t understand that if tincture of poppy could be sold as a pain reliever then there was no reason it couldn’t be sold to anyone who felt pain. They didn’t accept that marijuana was for more than just hippies. They didn’t accept a lot of things, including Nunez’s leadership. Connor suspected they hadn’t really decided to move north without him when The Plague hit, but he’d never asked the questions he didn’t want answered. Maybe they were back in Indiana. 

He didn’t remember if the stars there looked like these. It seemed like a lifetime ago, and maybe it was. A different life, back when he was a better person. Back before he knew what those sounds coming from Mom’s room meant. He’d stare through the skylight in his bedroom and try to sleep. In the morning the stars would be gone and some “uncle” would be in his kitchen, in his way as he tried to get ready for school. Maybe the jerk would ruffle his hair. More often they pretended he wasn’t there. Before the blackout Mom had said she was good at making friends, that she liked attention. After she looked more tired, more scared. 

Sometimes the same “uncle” would come around for a while and he’d get a feel for which noises meant it would be quiet soon. He’d count the stars though his skylight and wait for the quiet. Eventually it always got quiet. Tonight though the owls were loud and the stars were distant. In the morning, they’d be gone, too.


	29. Candles - Charlie

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For LJ's 54 prompts.

Connor had disappeared off to wherever old boyfriends go when you live in a town of more than 40 people. Bass was on the road with the Texas Rangers. Aaron and Cynthia had gone home hours ago. She was safe - she had a home - but someone, several someones, weren’t where they were supposed to be. When the house was finally quiet save the gentle, steady breathing of her uncle, mother, and grandfather, Charlie crept downstairs. 

She didn’t remember any of what she was supposed to say, but she remembered Granny Dani had lit a candle and put it in the kitchen window when someone was missing. Granny had said the light would help guide them home. One year it had been for Great-Gran, who'd gone to Jesus, whatever that meant, and for two Christmases it had been for Miles who was off somewhere dangerous while Santa found her at her grandma’s house in Indiana. Now, there were so many people missing Charlie had had to bring a bag to carry the votives home from the market. 

She lined them up on the window sill. The first one was for Danny, always Danny. He should be here. The second was for her father. Then she fell into chronological order. If she started counting total losses instead of just the most recent, most painful ones, she’d burn down the house. Maggie. Nora. Cynthia. Jason.

“You going with the Hail Mary or the Our Father?” 

She jumped at the break in the silence, but her instincts recognized Miles’ voice before she’d made it all the way around. 

“I don’t know what that means,” she said. 

“It means it’s been a long time since I was an altar boy or I could offer you more than two options.” He picked up the box of matches from the table and handed them to her. “Name the first candle and light it.” 

“Danny,” she said and stuck the match. 

Miles recited the Our Father. 

By the time all six candles were lit, she was crying in Miles’ arms. She was still six people short of the life she wanted, but she felt less alone.


	30. I See You - Jason / Connor

I drop my binoculars and the words just slip out. 

Jesus H. Christ. 

I don't like taking the Lord's name in vain but sometimes nothing else will do. My son, my own damn idiot son, has been hanging around with those not asking, not telling, in-law fuckers too damn long. 

I understood his dick's crush on Charlie. Decent face, great ass. Pain in the ass, too, but still she's got a great one, a high and tight little bumper. 

Maybe that's what he sees in Monroe's boy. 

For the first time I'm grateful that my Julia has passed on. She'll never have to know about this. Of course, she'd have found a way to make it work. She'd have put Big Monroe back on his throne and married our fool off to Little Monroe. It's like dominoes after that. Kill the big one, let the little one take over, kill the little one, and let our queen smile for the people while we pull his strings. 

Actually that's not a bad plan. 

I nod my head in prayer, grateful for my time with my angel. She may be gone from this Earth, but she still guides me. 

Jason always was a lousy soldier, but he looks good in a dress uniform and he can charm the wool off a sheep when he wants to. 

My boy's gonna be queen.


End file.
